50m penalty or not? Swan NOT penalised for act on siren, sealing Tigers’ lossBen Waterworth
Fox Sports
May 28th, 2022 One of the best AFL games of 2022 yet has finished in chaotic and controversial circumstances after an umpire decision to not hand Swan Chad Warner a 50m penalty left Tigers players flabbergasted and divided a fired-up footy world.
With Sydney leading Richmond by six points in the dying seconds of Friday night’s game, Tigers star Dion Prestia was awarded a free kick after being held at a stoppage on the wing.
But it appeared Warner didn’t hear the umpire’s whistle, as it came less than one second before the final siren sounded.
The circumstances meant a jubilant Warner, who was one of the best players on the ground, kicked the ball high into the SCG grandstand.
It prompted pleas from Richmond players and the commentary box for a 50m penalty.
“He’s kicked the ball over the fence it should be 50!” Channel 7 commentator Brian Taylor said
“There’s no excuses that he doesn’t know.”
As players watched on, a conversation between the umpires then took place on the field.
Umpire John Howorth appeared to seek clarity from colleague Brendan Hosking, via the umpire mic system, about the location of the free kick and, crucially, whether a 50m penalty should be paid.
Howorth asked: “He kicked the ball into the crowd after the free kick … 50m I think?”
However both Hosking and nine-time Grand Final umpire Matt Stevic were then heard over the umpire mics saying “nah, nah”. One of them said: “He (Warner) couldn’t hear the whistle.”
Howorth replied: “That’s why I’m asking the question. Are we happy with that?”
Howorth then approached Prestia and explained to him why he would have to take his kick from between wing and half-forward and not be advanced 50m.
“He couldn’t have heard the free kick. It’s just common sense, OK?” Howorth said.
Prestia’s kick, inevitably, landed well short of goal and the Swans hung on to win by six points.
Coincidentally, it was Warner who marked the ball from Prestia’s kick and ensured there was no impossible, fluky bounce through for a Richmond goal.
Herald Sun reporter Jon Ralph told Fox Footy it “might’ve been the most chaotic 20 seconds of the season so far”.
Richmond superstars Dustin Martin and Jack Riewoldt were both seen having passionate conversations with umpires post-match.
Warner told Channel 7 after the match he “obviously didn’t know it was a free kick”, adding: “Otherwise I wouldn’t have done that.”
Both coaches opted not to pass judgment on the non-call post-match.
Asked if he’d had time to break down the chain of events around the final siren, Richmond’s Damien Hardwick told reporters: “I haven’t. That’s not my job. There’s people on the ground that make those decisions.
“We’re probably the same as everyone else, we weren’t quite sure how it was going to unfold. So I’ll leave that up to you guys to find out and figure out.
“It’s irrelevant (what I think should’ve happened) … We can look at that last incident, but the fact of the matter is we were up by 30 points. It’s easy to look at the last play, but we should’ve iced the game.”
Asked to comment on the incident, Swans coach John Longmire told reporters: “I don’t know. I heard there was a holding free kick paid at the same time as the siren, so I don’t know what happened. You’d probably have to ask someone else, but that’s what I heard.”
Swans star Callum Mills told Fox Footy post-game: “‘Ramps’ (Dane Rampe) said it was going to be 50 and I started going, ‘Oh no’. The reality was it was nice that it wasn’t a 50.”
The incident divided opinion among the AFL world.
Melbourne champion Garry Lyon told Fox Footy post-match “technically the 50 was there”, but triple premiership Lion Jonathan Brown said umpires were not “as strict as they used to be when a player kicks the ball clear”.
“Going by the trend in the way they umpire when players do kick the ball away after a whistle, they normally don’t pay a 50m penalty,” Brown told Fox Footy.
Many fans and commentators thought a 50m penalty should’ve been paid.
“He’s kicked a ball away and at the moment the free kick was paid, the game was still live,” triple All-Australian Nick Dal Santo told Fox Footy Live. “The kick was after the siren, but the moment of the free kick was paid before (the siren).
“So whether he thinks it was his (free kick) or not, if that is in any other moment of the game, (it’s a free kick).
“I love that it was a common sense call, but we don’t live in common sense. It’s not happening enough.”
“Common Sense” isn’t a legitimate call for the umpires. Sorry.
Lol!!!! All of those who say the 50mt penalty doesn’t influence games!!!! Exhibit A!! FOREVER!!! #ItsAMess
Given all the ridiculous pointless 50s given this season, I’m surprised that wasn’t one.
“It’s common sense” according to umpires.
Brain melts after the siren are a Swans specialty. Rampe climbing the post, Warner booting the ball away.
50m penalty every other time in the game #AFLSwansTigers
Weird time to start introducing 'common sense' into umpiring.
Common sense = Obviously Warner didn't hear the umpire blow the whistle
Precedent = That has never mattered before
That's 50. They pay 50m penalties when players kick the ball away in other situations when the crowd is loud. Why not now? Same circumstance.
Generally swerve umpire chat because it almost never has an impact on a result but lol the green lads have bottled that one pretty hard
Wow that’s gonna cause some issues. ‘He didn’t know’ is not a valid reason for punting the footy into the stands.
That’s a disgrace.
You can’t pick and choose when the rules apply.
So kicking the ball into the stands after a fk awarded is ok these days? It’s either that or alternatively not knowing it’s a fk paid and kicking ball away is now an excuse and not 50. Either way it’s a mistake and the rule is still up for debate and interpretation.
Such a great game. Disappointing ends with an umpiring controversy. I'm all for umps making the call but not smart from Warner. Bloody lucky to get away with it.
Ralph added: “It’s not really up to the umpire to decide the frame of mind of a player who boots that ball away. I think it’s up to him to make a really strict interpretation.
“Of course there’s going to be some discretion there. All I’d say is if that’s in any other part of the field and with time on the clock at any other stage of a quarter, that’s a 50m penalty.
“Look it probably would’ve been the gutsiest call of the season.”
Others thought it was the right call.
“We’ve been asking umpires to use common sense for years. Technically that was a 50m penalty, but the umpire used common sense – and I don’t believe it should’ve been a 50m penalty,” triple premiership forward Cameron Mooney told Fox Footy Live.
“I think the umpire made the right decision.”
Seven-time All-Australian Nathan Buckley lauded the whistleblowers for showing “common-sense umpiring”.
“I thought that was well-adjudicated. Took the time, communicating through the mics and earpieces and came to the right conclusion,” Buckley told Fox Footy.
Correct call from the umpire, common sense prevails
I might be in the minority, but I think that was good, commonsense umpiring.
Good non 50 metre penalty. Umpires used common sense in a game with 60 free kicks and used some rational decision making at the death. Terrific game.
From the vision Cotchin doesn’t even know Prestia has got a free kick so why would Warner know as well. Common sense.
anyone who genuinely thinks a 50m penalty should have been paid at the end there must be real fun at parties
go join the police force if you reckon that's 50m, seriously. there's a spot for you
I think that was the common sense outcome.
It should only be a 50 metre penalty if Warner did it deliberately.
He didn’t.
I think the context, the siren, is important if you are going to award a 50.
Umpires often smashed for lacking a feel for the game. I reckon their feel for the game was spot on with that final decision. Right call
https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/teams/sydney-swans/afl-news-2022-sydney-swans-defeat-richmond-tigers-no-50m-penalty-against-chad-warner-for-kicking-ball-into-scg-crowd-rule-reaction/news-story/df260cd130918b0a3336bb3023538cb0
